Capsule wardrobe: Viking-era

Things being what they are, I'm returning to the SCA, albeit on a limited basis. A deep dive into my storage unit revealed almost no clothing of use, which prompts a flurry of activity in the ambry. 

The first question was "era?" I considered several factors; Gothic is my "main", but is time-consuming and requires some resources that I don't have. Byzantine-era is my "second", but the cost of materials gets prohibitive. My other "second" is the Viking era, which has the benefit of being cost-effective, relatively simple construction, and adaptable to my changing body size. And it's perfect for a capsule wardrobe. 

Clothing

The benefit of a capsule wardrobe is that a small selection of pieces can be interchanged to create different outfits, and different class impressions depending on need. My plan is as follows: 

• Smocks for each day
• serks, linen or wool (2 or 3)
• wool hangerok (1 or 2)
• Jorvic or Coppergate cap
• linen headscarf (1 or 2)
• cloak (optional)
• kaftan (optional)
• jewelry - domed brooches, necklaces, Saxon chicken brooch
• shoes & socks

Progress and plans

In short, I'm sewing 10th century Birka clothing, because it's simple, elegant, cost effective, and will accommodate my changing body size. 

My cutting pattern for the serk is the Birka pattern on Carolyn Priest-Dorman's page. I'm using Nille Glaesel's pattern for the hangerok - not the one in her book, but one I found on line but can't find again. 

A couple of useful wool remnants were sourced from Ebay- a tabby woven dark blue and a woolen heather purple for two hangeroks. Viking-era clothing being rectangular construction, small yardages do well and I was able to secure both for a modest investment. Fabrics-store.com supplied linen for serks, one a cool green and the other a wheat yellow, although there is limited evidence of colored linen. All colors are interchangeable for different looks on different days. 

A storage unit dive also supplied a couple more pieces of linen, but I'm not certain that there is enough for serks - I need 3+ yards for Priest-Dorman's Birka serk. I purchased 3 yards of each length of linen, which turns out to be just long enough for ankle-length, but promises to leave oodles of waste due to it's lovely width. 

Dress accessories

I am missing almost all of my Viking-era dress accessories and will be eventually replacing them until and unless I find my kit. The up side is that I have been provided an opportunity for some research. The down side is that I've already invested in domed brooches, beads, and a tiny Saxon-style laurel medallion (which I apparently can't replace). While I'll need to replace my domed brooches, I'm taking the opportunity to make my bead accessories more authentic. 

The Vikings provides visual resources regarding beads, which is super helpful when sourcing beads for a swag or necklace. Gemstones used include quartz (rock crystal), carnelian, and jet, although lampworked beads were more common. Gemstone beads are always either spheres or faceted and I've been able to source good approximations of period gemstone beads. For lampworked beads, I have a small handful on order from a well-known SCA laurel and am excited to see what he sends me! The lampworked beads are mostly for the modest swag that I usually wear, and the others will be mostly for a necklace or two. 

I will need to sew another Coppergate cap. Maybe a couple. However, a simple linen veil would be easy and authentic.

I have Viking-era shoes.